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Sat., Aug. 1, 2009 Butler’s Patrol Saturday, August 1 turned out to be a wild day for in-water rescues on the Delaware River. The NPS reported four rescues that day, one of which involved the NCSP. The others were handled by various local municipalities. That morning, about six of us met at Zane Grey to get our assignments. The NPS had decided that they did not want us to be on the water in boats, because of the water level, which was predicted to crest at around 9 feet that afternoon. So, we decided to do a shore based patrol at the Shohola access (just above the bridge). Upon arriving there, we quickly realized that given the swollen size of the river, and because we didn’t have boats, we probably couldn’t expect to do much in providing assistance. So, three of us decided to split off, and do a shore based patrol at Butler’s Hole, by walking down the trail from Route 97 above. We cleared the plan with NPS dispatch, and off we went. The trail down was relatively long, and then, at the bottom, we walked about a quarter mile downstream to below Butler’s Hole. We had a great view of the river from outcrops and the old D & H canal bed. We were there for perhaps a little over an hour when people in rafts going by started yelling that people were stuck in the trees upstream, on the Pennsylvania side. This probably was around 2:00. We radioed in the information to dispatch, and proceeded upstream on foot, in order to access the situation. As we got to where we could see around the bend in the river, up the Pennsylvania side, we saw a NPS power boat maneuvering in near the island, which had become a minagery of flooded trees. Vince was piloting, and an intern, Chris was assisting him. They quickly came over to the New York side, where Tony Broadwater and I met them, and hopped in. We crossed the river in the power boat to the flooded trees on the Pa. Side. There, in the trees, was a blue Silver Canoe raft, with four people in it. The front compartment was deflated. There were two parents, a daughter and her new husband. Vince’s only instructions to Tony and I were to “Okay, work your magic”. I was on the side closest to the raft, so I prepared to exit the boat. The boat was about 15 feet from the raft in the trees, and was just able to hold its position in the current, partly due to engine problems. There was a clump of saplings next to the boat, and then an old log spanning about 12 feet to another clump, a few feet from the raft. I fixed a line to my Class V vest, and Tony took the other end, and I took a second smaller line for hauling. I walked about five feet, next to the downstream side of the log, and then the bottom dropped out. I floated in the current, and went hand over hand, sideways down the log to the other end. I stood on the clump there, and leaped onto the side of the raft, where the people helped pull me in. We reconnoitered for about 10 minutes, since it was apparent that there was no easy solution. All agreed to go, one at a time, holding a rope and leaping into the water. The current would swing us into the stern end of the powerboat with Tony belaying in the bow of the boat. The first went well, but the boat ladder got away in the current. The next was a woman in her twenties, as she made it near the boat, lost one of her hands from the rope, and then lost the rope entirely, but Chris and Tony were able to grab her life vest and haul her in. Because of the engine problems, people were rescued two at a time, and taken to the N.Y. shore. I was last. I heaved their three packs into the powerboat, and then jumped in the water, finding out why the people had been challenged by the current. As this was going on, Mike Wilk had taken care of the people as they were brought ashore. He had been a few steps behind Tony and I when the powerboat had come in, and so had not gotten aboard. Since the boat had engine problems, the people had to be walked out. The walk went down the old D & H canal bed, and then up the trail to Route 97. We transported the people to Silver Canoe in Port Jervis, where they met up with the rest of their family with whom they had become separated at Butler’s Rift. It was 4:30 as we prepared to leave Silver Canoe, and we radioed in to dispatch to ask for any other assignments. Dispatch said we were free to leave, and we signed off. We turned in the radio at the Barryville NPS office, and then Mike, Tony and I held a brief post rescue meeting to share ideas and impressions, while they were still fresh in our minds. By Peter Van Slyke Patrol: Tony Broadwater, Peter Van Slyke, Mike Wilk |